Generating an Audio Signal from Multiple Microphones Based on Uncorrelated Noise Detection

ABSTRACT

An audio capture device selects between multiple microphones to generate an output audio signal depending on detected conditions. When the presence of wind noise or other uncorrelated noise is detected, the audio capture device selects, for each of a plurality of different frequency sub-bands, an audio signal having the lowest noise and combines the selected frequency sub-bands signals to generate an output audio signal. When wind noise or other uncorrelated noise is not detected, the audio capture device determines whether each of a plurality of microphones are wet or dry and selects one or more audio signals from the microphones depending on their respective conditions.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/396,380, filed Dec. 30, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No. ______, whichapplication claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/396,002 filed on Sep. 16, 2016, each of which is incorporated byreference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

This disclosure relates to audio capture, and more specifically, togenerating an audio signal from multiple available microphones in anaudio capture system.

Description of the Related Art

Varying environmental conditions may significantly impact the quality ofaudio captured by a conventional camera. For example, the audio may beaffected by wind, water, or other environmental conditions. Optimizingthe audio capture is particularly challenging when the conditions aresubject to frequent changing, such as when the camera is moved in andout of the presence of wind, when the camera is moved in and out ofwater, or when the camera is subject to splashing water. During certainactivities such as surfing, swimming, or other water sports, suchtransitions may occur frequently over an extended period of time.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosed embodiments have other advantages and features which willbe more readily apparent from the following detailed description of theinvention and the appended claims, when taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example embodiment of an audiocapture device.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a process forgenerating an audio signal from multiple microphones dependent ondetected environmental conditions.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a process forgenerating an audio signal in conditions resulting in substantiallyuncorrelated audio signals from different microphones.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a process forselecting microphones in the camera and encoding the audio dependent onwhether the microphones are wet or dry.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a process forgenerating an audio signal from multiple microphones depending on asubmersion condition.

FIG. 6 is an example embodiment of a camera in which the audio capturedevice may be integrated.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The figures and the following description relate to preferredembodiments by way of illustration only. It should be noted that fromthe following discussion, alternative embodiments of the structures andmethods disclosed herein will be readily recognized as viablealternatives that may be employed without departing from the principlesof what is claimed.

Reference will now be made in detail to several embodiments, examples ofwhich are illustrated in the accompanying figures. It is noted thatwherever practicable similar or like reference numbers may be used inthe figures and may indicate similar or like functionality. The figuresdepict embodiments of the disclosed system (or method) for purposes ofillustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize fromthe following description that alternative embodiments of the structuresand methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing fromthe principles described herein.

Configuration Overview

In a first embodiment, an output audio signal is generated in an audiocapture system having a plurality of microphones. At least a first audiosignal and a second audio signal are received from the plurality ofmicrophones. A first plurality of frequency sub-band signals aregenerated from the first audio signal corresponding to a plurality offrequency sub-bands and a second plurality of frequency sub-band signalsare generated from the second audio signal corresponding to theplurality of frequency sub-bands. For each of the first and secondpluralities of frequency sub-band signals, a frequency band-dependentoffset is applied to generate a first plurality of offset frequencysub-band signals from the first plurality of frequency sub-band signalsand a second plurality of offset frequency sub-band signals from thesecond plurality of frequency sub-band signals. An overall correlationmetric is determined between the first plurality of offset frequencysub-band signals and the second plurality of offset frequency sub-bandsignals. Responsive to the overall correlation metric exceeding a firstpredefined threshold, the audio signals are processed according to acorrelated audio signal processing algorithm to generate an output audiosignal. Responsive to the overall correlation metric not exceeding thefirst predefined threshold, the audio signals are processed according toan uncorrelated audio signal processing algorithm to generate the outputaudio signal.

In another embodiment, an output audio signal is generated in an audiocapture device having multiple microphones including at least a firstreference microphone capturing a first audio signal, a second referencemicrophone capturing a second audio signal, and a drainage microphonecapturing a third audio signal. The drainage microphone is adjacent to adrainage channel for draining liquid away from the drainage microphone.The audio capture device determines if each of the first referencemicrophone and the second microphone are wet or dry. Responsive todetermining that both the first reference microphone and the secondreference microphone are wet, the third audio signal is selected fromthe drainage microphone, and a first mono audio output signalcorresponding to the first time period is generated from the third audiosignal. Responsive to determining that both the first referencemicrophone and the second reference microphone are dry, the first audiosignal from the first reference microphone and the second audio signalfrom the second reference microphone are selected, and a stereo audiooutput signal corresponding to the second time period is generated byprocessing the first and second audio signals. Responsive to determiningthat the first reference microphone is dry and the second referencemicrophone is wet, the first audio signal from the first referencemicrophone is selected, and a second mono audio output signalcorresponding to the third time period is generated from the first audiosignal. Responsive to determining that the second reference microphoneis dry and the first reference microphone is wet, the second audiosignal from the second reference microphone is selected, and a thirdmono output audio signal corresponding to the fourth time period isgenerated from the second audio signal.

Example Audio Capture Device

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an audio capture device 100 includingmultiple microphones. The audio capture system 100 may include aplurality of reference microphone 120 including at least a firstreference microphone 122 (or set of first reference microphones 122) anda second reference microphone 124 (or set of second referencemicrophones 124), at least one drainage microphone 110, a microphoneselection controller 130, an audio combiner 135, and an audio encoder140. In an embodiment, the first reference microphone 122 may bepositioned on a top face of the audio capture device 100 (and may alsobe referred to as a “top microphone” herein), the second referencemicrophone 124 may be positioned on a side face of the audio capturedevice 100 (and may be referred to as a “side microphone” herein), andthe drainage microphone 110 may be positioned on a front face of theaudio capture device 100 (and may also be referred to as a “frontmicrophone” herein).

The drainage microphone 110 may have a drainage channel adjacent to itto enable water to drain away from the drainage microphone 110 morequickly than water may drain from the reference microphones 120 thatlack the drainage channel. The drainage channel may be structured suchthat water is drawn away from the drainage microphone 110 due togravitational, capillary, and/or surface tension forces. In variousembodiments, the drainage channel may be implemented using an innersurface energy coating or particular hole dimensions, shapes, density,patterns, or interior curvature or a combination of features that affectthat drainage profile of the drainage microphone 110. The drainagemicrophone 110 can therefore recover relatively quickly when moved frombeing submerged under water to being out of water. Thus, compared to thereference microphones 120, the drainage microphone 110 may bettermitigate frequency response distortion caused by water being trapped onthe membrane over the drainage microphone 110 or obscuring the acousticpathways to the drainage microphone 110. In an embodiment, at least thereference microphones 120 may include a physical barrier between thesplashing water and a waterproof membrane over the microphone tomitigate the impulses from splashing water. For example, in oneembodiment, the barrier comprises a plastic barrier that absorbs some ofthe water impact impulse. In another embodiment, an air buffer may existbetween the barrier and the waterproof membrane over the referencemicrophones 120. In another embodiment, a porting structure traps abuffer layer of water on the outside of a waterproof membrane over thereference microphone 120, thus creating a protective layer that blockssplashing water from directly impacting the waterproof membrane.Additionally, the muffling quality of water pooled on the waterproofmembrane reduces some high frequency content of the splashing water. Inone embodiment, the drainage microphone 110 may similarly include awaterproof membrane.

In operation, both the drainage microphone 110 and the referencemicrophones 120 capture ambient audio 105 and pass the captured audio tothe microphone selection controller 130. The audio captured by thedrainage microphone 110, the first reference microphones 122, and thesecond reference microphone 124 may each have varying audiocharacteristics due to the different structural features and/orpositions of the microphones 110, 122, 124 on the audio capture device100. For example, the drainage microphone 110 may have degradedsignal-to-noise in windy conditions relative to the referencemicrophones 120 due to the drainage channel. Furthermore, the drainagemicrophone 110 may have degraded signal-to-noise when the audio capturedevice 100 is submerged under water so that water cannot drain from thedrainage channel. However, the drainage microphone 110 may generallyhave better signal-to-noise ratio performance than the referencemicrophones 120 when the audio capture device 100 is moved out of wateror is subject to splashing because it can more quickly drain the wateraway from the microphone. Furthermore, due to their different placement,the first reference microphone 122 or second reference microphone 124may provide better signal quality in particular frequency bands atdifferent times during capture. Therefore, a different selection betweenthe audio signals or portions thereof (e.g., different frequencysub-bands) captured by drainage microphone 110, the first referencemicrophone 122, and the second reference microphone 124 may be desirableunder different audio capture conditions.

The microphone selection controller 130 processes the audio capturedfrom the drainage microphone 110 and the reference microphones 120 andselects, based on the audio characteristics, which of the audio signalsor portions thereof (e.g., particular frequency sub-bands) to pass tothe audio combiner 135. In one embodiment, the microphone selectioncontroller 130 operates on a block-by-block basis. In this embodiment,for each time interval, the microphone selection controller 130 receivesa first block of audio data from the drainage microphone 110, a secondblock of audio data from the first reference microphone 122, and thirdblock of audio data from the second reference microphone 124. Each blockcorresponds to ambient audio 105 captured by the respective microphones110, 122, 124 during the same time interval. The microphone selectioncontroller 130 processes the set of blocks to determine which block orblocks or portions thereof to pass to the audio combiner 135. Themicrophone selection controller 130 may pass more than one block fromdifferent ones of the microphones 110, 122, 124 to the audio combiner135 in a given time interval. If multiple blocks are passed to the audiocombiner 135, the audio combiner 135 may either combine the blocks togenerate a block of a single audio channel or may generate blocks ofseparate stereo audio channels.

In one embodiment, the microphone selection controller 130 may dividethe audio in each block into a plurality of different frequencysub-bands. The microphone selection controller 130 may then determinewhich frequency sub-bands from which blocks to pass to the audiocombiner 135. Thus, for example, for a given time interval, themicrophone selection controller 130 does not necessarily pass or hold anentire block from a given microphone 110, 122, 124, but may instead passonly certain frequency sub-bands from the different blocks from thedifferent microphones 110, 122, 124. In this way, the microphoneselection controller 130 may choose frequency sub-bands from particularmicrophones that will enable the audio combiner 135 to provide the bestquality audio output.

In one embodiment, the microphone selection controller 130 generallyoperates to select the drainage microphone 110 directly aftertransitioning out of water when the reference microphones 122, 124 areboth wet since the drainage microphone 110 tends to drain the waterfaster and has better audio quality when the microphones are wet.Furthermore, the microphone selection controller 130 generally operatesto select one or both of the reference microphones 120 when themicrophones 122, 124 are dry.

The audio combiner 135 combines the blocks or portions thereof (e.g.,particular frequency sub-bands) of audio received from the microphoneselection controller 130 to generate a combined audio signal. Thiscombining may include combining blocks or portions thereof (e.g.,particular frequency sub-bands) received from the different microphones110, 122, 124.

An audio encoder 140 then encodes the combined audio signal to generatean output audio signal 145. Encoding may include compressing the audiosignal.

In an embodiment, the microphone selection control 130, the audiocombiner 135, and/or the audio encoder 140 are implemented as aprocessor and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storinginstructions that when executed by the processor carry out the functionsattributed to the microphone selection controller 130, the audiocombiner 135, and/or audio encoder 140 described herein. The microphoneselection controller 130, audio combiner 135, and audio encoder 140 maybe implemented using a common processor or separate processors. In otherembodiments, the microphone selection controller 130, audio combiner135, and/or audio encoder 140 may be implemented in hardware, (e.g.,with an FPGA or ASIC), firmware, or a combination of hardware, firmwareand software.

In an embodiment, the audio capture system 100 is implemented within acamera system such as the camera 600 described below with respect toFIG. 6. Such a camera may use the encoded audio 145 captured by theaudio capture system 100 as an audio channel for video captured by thecamera. Thus, the audio capture system 100 may capture audio in a mannerthat is concurrent and synchronized with corresponding frames of video.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a process forgenerating an audio output audio signal from audio signals captured frommultiple different microphones. Audio signals are received 202 from atleast two microphones, which may include the drainage microphone 110,the first reference microphone 122, the second reference microphone 124or any combination thereof. The audio signals may comprise audio blocksfor a particular time interval of a longer audio stream. The audiosignals 204 are each split in a plurality of different frequencysub-bands. In each frequency sub-band, a noise-floor dependent amplitudeoffset is applied 206. The noise floor represents, for each sub-band, athreshold amplitude level of a minimum amount of noise expected to bepresent in the audio signal. The respective noise floors for differentsub-bands may be different. A greater amplitude offset is applied insub-bands with higher noise floors to ensure that the signals can bereliably correlated in the following steps. In each sub-band, a sub-bandcorrelation metric is determined 208 between the offset audio signalsfrom the two or more microphones. The sub-band correlation metric mayrepresent a similarity between signal levels of audio block sub-bandscaptured by the microphones for a given time interval. Generally, thesignals will be well-correlated in the absence of wind noise or othernoise having similar noise profiles in the given sub-band, but will bepoorly correlated when wind or other noise is present in the sub-band.Thus, the correlation metric may operate as a wind detection metric. Inone embodiment, each sub-band correlation metric comprises a value from0 to 1 where a correlation metric of 1 represents a situation consistentwith little to no uncorrelated noise present in the sub-band, and acorrelation metric of 0 means that the captured audio may besubstantially comprised of uncorrelated noise such as wind noise.

An overall correlation metric is calculated 210 for all sub-bands belowa frequency threshold (e.g., below 1500 Hz). The overall correlationmetric may comprise for example, an average (e.g., mean) or weightedaverage of the sub-band correlation metrics for sub-bands under thefrequency threshold. The overall correlation metric is compared 212 to apredefined threshold. In one embodiment, the predefined threshold maydynamically change between two or more predefined thresholds dependingon the previous state (e.g., whether the threshold was exceeded in theprevious audio block) to include a hysteresis effect. For example, iffor the previously processed block, the correlation metric exceeded thepredefined threshold (e.g., a predefined threshold of 0.8), then thepredefined threshold is set lower for the current block (e.g. 0.7). Iffor the previously processed block, the correlation metric did notexceed the predefined threshold (e.g., a predefined threshold of 0.8),then the predefined threshold for the current block is set higher (e.g.,to 0.8).

If the correlation metric exceeds the predefined threshold in step 212,a correlated audio signal processing algorithm is applied 216 togenerate an output audio signal based on one or more of the drainagemicrophone 110, the first reference microphone 120, and the secondreference microphone 130, or a combination thereof. For example, in oneembodiment, the correlated audio signal processing algorithm generates acombined audio signal based on water conditions associated with each ofthe microphones (e.g., whether each microphone is wet or dry). Anexample embodiment of the correlated audio signal processing algorithmis described in further detail below with respect to FIG. 4. Otherwise,if the overall correlation metric is below the threshold in step 212,the microphone selection controller 130 creates 214 a combined audiosignal based on an uncorrelated audio signal processing algorithm. Theuncorrelated processing algorithm may select, for each frequency band, afrequency component of an audio signal having the lowest uncorrelatednoise and combine these frequency components together to create thecombined audio signal. An example embodiment of an uncorrelated audiosignal processing algorithm is described in further detail below withrespect to FIG. 3. The combined audio signal is then encoded 218.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of an uncorrelatedaudio signal processing algorithm. This algorithm may be applied, forexample, when wind noise or other uncorrelated noise is detected in theaudio signals. For each sub-band, the audio signal having the lowestwind noise is selected 302 for that time interval. For example, in oneembodiment, the audio signal having the lowest root-mean-square signallevel in a given frequency sub-band is selected as the audio signal withthe lowest wind noise for that frequency sub-band. In each sub-band,noise suppression processing is then applied 304 on the selected audiosignal based on the sub-band correlation metric for that sub-band tofurther reduce the noise. The original (non-offset) audio signals foreach of the selected sub-bands with noise suppression processing appliedare then combined 306 to generate the output audio signal.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a process forselecting between one or more of a drainage microphone 110, a firstreference microphone 122, and a second reference microphone 124 based ona water condition. This process may correspond to step 216 in FIG. 2 andthus may be performed when correlated signals are detected between thedifferent microphones. The microphone selection controller 130determines 406 whether either or both of the reference microphones 122,124 are wet. In one embodiment, the wet microphone condition can bedetected by observing spectral response changes over a predefinedfrequency range (e.g., 2 kHz-4 kHz) or by detecting the sound patternknown to be associated with a wet microphone as compared to a drymicrophone. For example, in one embodiment the spectral featuresassociated with a wet microphone can be found through empirical means.In general, when a microphone membrane is wet, higher frequency soundsare attenuated because the extra weight of the water on the membranereduces the vibration of the membrane. Thus, the water generally acts asa low pass filter. An example of a process for detecting wet microphonesis described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/083,266 filed onMar. 28, 2016, which is incorporated by reference herein. In oneembodiment, spectral changes can be monitored based on the measuredknown drain time constant differences between the microphone geometries.In other embodiments, a sensor near the microphone membrane may be usedto detect the wet microphone condition. If the microphone selectioncontroller 130 determines 408 that both reference microphones 122, 124are wet, then the audio signal from the drainage microphone 110 isselected 414 and outputted 418 as a mono output audio channel.Otherwise, if the microphone selection controller 130 determines 410that both reference microphones are dry, the microphone sectioncontroller 130 selects 412 the audio signals from both the referencemicrophones 122,124 and processes them to output 418 channels of astereo output audio signal. For example, a beamforming process may beapplied to generate the stereo output audio signal from the two audiosignal. Otherwise, if neither both reference microphones 122, 124 arewet nor both microphones 122, 124 are dry (e.g., the first referencemicrophone 122 is wet and the second reference microphone 124 is dry orvice versa), the microphone selection controller 130 selects 416 the drymicrophone from among the first and second reference microphones 122,124 for outputting 418 in as a mono output audio channel.

Table 1 illustrates the results of applying the process of FIG. 4:

TABLE 1 1^(st) Ref. 2^(nd) Ref. Drainage Mic Mic Wet? Mic Wet? Mic Wet?Encoding Selection No No No Stereo 1^(st) and 2^(nd) Ref. Mics No No YesStereo 1^(st) and 2^(nd) Ref. Mics No Yes No Mono 1^(st) Ref. Mic No YesYes Mono 1^(st) Ref. Mic Yes No No Mono 2^(nd) Ref. Mic Yes No Yes Mono2^(nd) Ref. Mic Yes Yes No Mono Drainage Mic Yes Yes Yes Mono DrainageMic

As illustrated in the table, both reference microphones 120 are selectedin a stereo encoding when they are both dry. If only one of thereference microphones 120 is dry, the dry one is selected in a monoencoding. If both the reference microphones are wet, the drainagemicrophone is selected.

In general, under the process of FIGS. 2-4 described above, an audiocapture device 100 that is completely submerged in liquid will generateaudio signals having uncorrelated noise similar to wind noise and willthus be processed according to the uncorrelated audio signal processingalgorithm of FIG. 4. In an alternative embodiment, an independentsubmersion detection sensor may be used to determine whether the audiocapture device 100 is submerged. For example, in the process of FIG. 5,the microphone selection controller 130 determines 502 if themicrophones 110, 122, 124 are submerged in liquid (e.g., water). In oneembodiment, a water submersion sensor may be used to determine if themicrophones 110, 122, 124 are submerged. In other embodiment (in whichthe audio capture device 100 is integrated with a camera), an imageanalysis may be performed to detect features representative of thecamera being submerged in water. For example, detecting color loss maybe indicative of the camera being submerged because it causesexponential loss of light intensity depending on wavelength.Furthermore, crinkle patterns may be present in the image when thecamera is submerged because the water surface can form small concave andconvex lenses that create patches of light and dark. Additionally, lightreflecting off particles in the water creates scatter and diffusion thatcan be detected to determine if the camera is submerged. In anotherembodiment, a touch screen on the camera may be used to detect a changein capacitance when the camera is submerged indicative of submersion. Inyet another embodiment, water pressure on a waterproof membrane of oneof the reference microphones 122, 124 may be detected because thewaterproof membrane will deflect under external water pressure. Thiscauses increased tension which shifts the waterproof membrane'sresonance higher from its nominal value and can be detected in themicrophone signal. Furthermore, the deflection of the waterproofmembrane will results in a positive pressure on and deflection of themicrophone membrane which could manifest itself as a shift in microphonebias. Additionally, a sensor could be placed near the waterproofmembrane to detect an increase in shear force caused by deflection ofthe waterproof membrane that is indicative of the microphone beingsubmerged.

If the microphones are detected 504 to be submerged, the drainagemicrophone 110 is not used and an output audio signal is derived fromone or more of the reference microphones 122, 124 because the drainagemicrophone 110 generally performs poorly underwater. For example, in oneembodiment, an uncorrelated audio signal processing algorithm similar toFIG. 3 is applied to process the audio signals from the referencemicrophones on a sub-band basis, and for each sub-band, select thereference audio signal having the lowest noise. Alternatively, if theaudio capture device 100 is determined 504 not to be submerged, an audiosignal processing algorithm similar to FIG. 2 may be applied 506 todetermine whether or not the signals are correlated and apply thecorrelated or uncorrelated audio signal processing depending on thedetermination.

Example Camera Configuration

FIG. 6 illustrate an embodiment of an example camera 600 that mayinclude the audio capture device 100. The camera 600 may comprise acamera body 602 having a camera lens 604 structured on a front surfaceof the camera body, various indicators on the front of the surface ofthe camera body 602 (such as LEDs, displays, and the like), variousinput mechanisms (such as buttons, switches, and touch-screenmechanisms), and electronics (e.g., imaging electronics, powerelectronics, etc.) internal to the camera body 602 for capturing imagesvia the camera lens and/or performing other functions. The camera 600may be configured to capture images and video, and to store capturedimages and video for subsequent display or playback.

The camera 600 can include various indicators, including a display panel606. The camera 600 can also include buttons 610 configured to allow auser of the camera to interact with the camera, to turn the camera on,and to otherwise configure the operating mode of the camera. The camera600 can also include a plurality of microphones including the drainagemicrophone 110 (located near a bottom right corner of the camera 600),and reference microphones 122, 124 (located on a top and side facerespectively of the camera 600 near the top left corner) describedabove. The front, bottom, or side surfaces of the camera may include oneor more drainage ports as part of a drainage channel adjacent to thedrainage microphone 110 for the camera audio system as described above.For example, the drainage channel includes an opening on a bottom faceof the camera to drain liquid away from a recess in which the drainagemicrophone 110 is positioned.

Additional Configuration Considerations

Throughout this specification, some embodiments have used the expression“coupled” along with its derivatives. The term “coupled” as used hereinis not necessarily limited to two or more elements being in directphysical or electrical contact. Rather, the term “coupled” may alsoencompass two or more elements are not in direct contact with eachother, but yet still co-operate or interact with each other, or arestructured to provide a drainage path between the elements.

Likewise, as used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,”“includes,” “including,” “has,” “having” or any other variation thereof,are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process,method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is notnecessarily limited to only those elements but may include otherelements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method,article, or apparatus.

In addition, use of the “a” or “an” are employed to describe elementsand components of the embodiments herein. This is done merely forconvenience and to give a general sense of the invention. Thisdescription should be read to include one or at least one and thesingular also includes the plural unless it is obvious that it is meantotherwise.

Finally, as used herein any reference to “one embodiment” or “anembodiment” means that a particular element, feature, structure, orcharacteristic described in connection with the embodiment is includedin at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrase “in oneembodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarilyall referring to the same embodiment.

Upon reading this disclosure, those of skill in the art will appreciatestill additional alternative structural and functional designs asdisclosed from the principles herein. Thus, while particular embodimentsand applications have been illustrated and described, it is to beunderstood that the disclosed embodiments are not limited to the preciseconstruction and components disclosed herein. Various modifications,changes and variations, which will be apparent to those skilled in theart, may be made in the arrangement, operation and details of the methodand apparatus disclosed herein without departing from the spirit andscope defined in the appended claims.

1. A method for generating an output audio signal in an audio capturesystem having a plurality of microphones, the method comprising:receiving at least a first audio signal and a second audio signal fromthe plurality of microphones; generating a first plurality of frequencysub-band signals from the first audio signal corresponding to aplurality of frequency sub-bands and generating a second plurality offrequency sub-band signals from the second audio signal corresponding tothe plurality of frequency sub-bands; for each of the first and secondpluralities of frequency sub-band signals, applying a frequencyband-dependent offset to generate a first plurality of offset frequencysub-band signals from the first plurality of frequency sub-band signalsand a second plurality of offset frequency sub-band signals from thesecond plurality of frequency sub-band signals; determining, by aprocessor, an overall correlation metric between the first plurality ofoffset frequency sub-band signals and the second plurality of offsetfrequency sub-band signals; responsive to the overall correlation metricexceeding a first predefined threshold, processing the audio signalsaccording to a correlated audio signal processing algorithm to generatean output audio signal; and responsive to the overall correlation metricnot exceeding the first predefined threshold, processing the audiosignals according to an uncorrelated audio signal processing algorithmto generate the output audio signal.